Spring freshet: Montréal is announcing the closure of the Île Mercier bridge to all vehicles

MONTRÉAL, April 20, 2026 /CNW/ - Due to the spring freshet, the urban agglomeration of Montréal is announcing the closure of the Île Mercier bridge to vehicular traffic, as of 7 p.m. this evening, in L'Île-Bizard–Sainte-Geneviève borough. The bridge will however remain open to pedestrians.

This closure will remain in effect until further notice, due to the high levels reached by the Rivière des Prairies. Montréal is asking citizens to avoid the area and to comply with the signaling in place.

Please note that Chemin de l'Anse-à-l'Orme, between Chemin de Senneville and Rue Timberlea-Trail, has also been closed since 5 p.m. this past Sunday. 

Crews in action

The civil protection and business continuity organization's special response plan for spring flooding (Plan particulier d'intervention – inondations printanières de l'Organisation de sécurité civile et de continuité des affaires de l'agglomération de Montréal) remains in effect. City, borough and reconstituted municipality crews are mobilized to ensure the safety of all residents. The urban agglomeration has the resources required and has rolled out all mitigation and protection measures necessary to handle the situation. 

The civil protection department is continuing its mobilization, and our crews are hard at work at the different sites that are at risk of flooding.

Residents of areas that are at risk of flooding can find information specific to their area at Montreal.ca, as well as on their borough or municipality's Web site. We also recommend that all borough residents register to receive Notices and Alerts by email or text message regarding important information affecting their area.

As for the distribution of sandbags, it is a local initiative managed by boroughs and related municipalities. Residents should therefore reach out to their borough or related municipality to obtain sandbags. For all additional information, residents can dial 311.

The emergency coordination centre (Centre de coordination des mesures d'urgence) has posted a map showing road conditions to help Montrealers plan their travels. For safety reasons, we recommend avoiding the areas affected by road closures. 

SOURCE Ville de Montréal

Source and information: Division des affaires publiques et des mesures d'urgence, Ville de Montréal, [email protected]